Mailing or similar receptacle



(No Model.) 2 SheetsSheet 1.

D. J. MOKENZIE & W. MARTIN. MAILING 0B. SIMILAR REOEPTAGLE.

No. 560,227. Patented May 19, 1896.

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(No Model.) 2 SheetsSheet 2.

D. J. MGKENZIB & W. MARTIN. MAILING 0R SIMILAR REGEPTAGLE.

' No. 560,227. Patented May 19, 1896.

ifj fl i 2 v i a m I l 1 ANDREW B GRAHAMJHOTO u'mQwAsmNm'uN nc UNITEDSTATES PATENT. OFFICE- DOUGAL J. MCKENZIE AND ILLIAM MARTIN, OF CHICAGO,ILLINOIS.

MAILING OR SIMILAR RECEPTACLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 560,227, dated May 19,1896.

Application filed August 3, 1895.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, DOUGAL J. MCKENZIE and WILLIAM MARTIN, citizens ofthe United States, residing at Chicago, Illinois, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Mailing and SimilarReceptacles, of whichthe following is a specification.

The principal object of our invention is to produce a simple,economical, and eificient tube for carrying bottles, frangible articles,&c., through the mails without injury to such articles and at the sametime to permit an easy inspection of the contents of the package.

A further object of our invention is to provide a simple and eificientself-locking stopper adapted for use in various styles of packages,bottles, fruit-jars, and the like.

The invention therefore consists, principally, in providing amailing-tube with an interior cushioned surface, an annularlockinggroove, and combined therewith an elastic or pliable stopperwhich is provided with a circumferential ledge, lug, bead, orprojections adapted to fit the locking-recess of the tube and preventthe easy withdrawal of the stopper.

The invention further consists in providing a tube, bottle, fruit-jar,or similar article with an interior annular locking recess or groove inthe neck or opening of the package and combining therewith a stopperhaving a circumferential bead, lug, ledge, or projections adapted to fitthe locking-recess of the package, the parts being so arranged that thestopper is easily inserted, but its withdrawal is more difficult, andespecially designed to resist opening by internal pressure.

The invention finally consists of features and combinations hereinafterdescribed and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a vertical section of one formof mailing-tube fitted with our improvements. Fig. 2 is a transversesectional view taken on line 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a mailing-tubefitted with a modified form of our improvements, and

dis a fruit jar or can fitted with our improved automatic orself-locking stopper.

In constructing a mailing-tube fitted with our improvements a-tube A isprovided, which maybe made of any suitable material, though paper ispreferable for this purpose.

The in- $erial N0. 568,64. (N0 model.)

terior of the tube is lined wit-h a piece a of corrugated paper orstrawboard, so that the bottle B may be readilyinserted and held inplace and at the same time kept from contact with the rigid walls of thetube. Instead of corrugated paper pieces of cork or similar cushionedsubstances may be provided and glued or otherwise afiixed to the innerwalls of the tube, so as to prevent the bottle or article from contactinwith the rigid walls and protect it from injury during transmission orstorage.

To permanently close one end of the tube, we provide a bottom piece 0,preferably formed of rubber or similar substance and made in the form ofan arch, so as to form a yielding end for the tube upon which thepackage may rest. This bottom portion,- as we prefer to term it, isinset a short distance in the end of the tube, so as to be kept freefrom rigid contact with anyadjoining article or package. The rubber maybe rigidly secured to the end of the tube in any convenient In annerwell known to manufacturers and persons skilled in this particular art.To close the other end of the tube so as to permit an easy and readyinspection of the interior, we provide what we term the upper portion ofthe tube with a vulcanized hard-rubber end piece D, rigidlyaffixed tothe tube proper. This end piece is provided with an annularlocking-groove (Z for the purpose of removably looking or holding thecork or stopper in place. A stopper E, formed of elastic or pliablematerial, preferably rubber, is pro vided, which has a flanged headportion 6 and its circumference provided with a circu mferential lug,head, or ledge E, adapted to fit the locking-recess in the interior ofthe tube.

The form of the stopper shown in Fig. 1 is provided with aninverted-dome-shaped i11- terior portion 6, against which one end of thebottle may impinge, so that during the shipping or transmission of theentire package should the bottle strike hard against the dome-shapedportion it would act to more securely lock the stopperin place.Examining the stopper E carefully it will be seen that it is what mightbe called an annular groove 6 opposite the beaded portion. This is forthe purpose of giving more flexibility to the stopper, so that duringthe insertion of such stopper it will yield readily orbeeome pliable, sothat it may readily slip into locking position. The inner dome beinginverted, if internal pressure be exerted against it it tends tostraighten out into a fiat plane and force the bead, lug, orlocking-ledge,as it might be termed, more securely into lockin g engagement with the groove in the neck of package. The stopper is furtherprovided with a button E for the purpose of enabling a person to graspthe same and assist in the withdrawal of the stopper from the package.This self-loeking of the stopper and the making of it in such mannerthat internal pressure more securely looks it in position is a Veryimportant advantage for the reason that there is less liability fordisturbance of package and leakage of the contents due to shocks whichare apt to occur during transmission or shipment.

By the use of a hard-rubber interior end piece and a comparatively softrubber or flexible stopper a hermetical seal is also provided, so thatshould the package, through accident or otherwise, become broken thecontents would not spill or leak into the mail-pouch to destroy otherarticles during shipment. This is an important advantage, in that itcomplies with the postal regulations governing the transmission offrangible articles or deleterious liquid and compounds through the mail.

In Fig. 3 we have shown a modification of our improvements, in which thetube A is made substantially the same as in Fig. 1 and lined, as in suchprevious figure, with a cushioned lining a. The end piece D is alsosimilar in construction to the end piece shown in Fig. 1. For thepurpose of preventing the easy removal of the stopper E by internalpressure a rigid disk G is inserted beneath the stopper and above thearticle stored therein, so that during transmission or shipment of thepackage the shocks that are consequent thereto are imparted to theextreme edges a of the stopper and tend to tighten the same rather thanto remove it. The transmission of force being practically in a straightline the bead or locking-lug would practically have to be destroyedbefore the stopper could be removed. In this figure the stopper is madealmost identical with the stopper shown in Fig. 1, with the exceptionthat the inverted dome is left off and the inner side curved upward toprovide flexible lower ends.

In Fig. 4 we have shown our improved stopper as applied to an ordinaryfruit-can for the purpose of sealing the same during the storage ortransmission of the can. 111 constructing a fruit-can with ourimprovement we make the body portion H of the can proper of any desiredshape or size provided with a neck portion h. The neck portion isprovided with an opening for the purpose of filling the can or removingthe contents, in the interior of which is a circumferential ledge h anda locking-recess 7L Resting upon this ledge is a rigid disk I,preferably made of glass or similar substance, so that the interiorcontents will not be aitected or injured by contact therewith. A stopperK is provided of substantially the same shape as the one illustrated inFig. 3. The circumference of the stopper is provided with acircumferential locking lug or bead 7t, adapted to fit thelocking-recess of the neck and hold the stopper in place. The stopper isalso provided with a flanged head portion K to limit the insertion ofthe stopper and protect the frangible edges of the can, and with abutton for the purpose of assisting in the insertion and withdrawal ofthe stopper.

In use the can is filled with fruits or such other substance as may bedesired, the rigid disk put in place, and the stopper inserted.Fermentation of the material or interior pressure of gas or shocks areall imparted directly to the rigid disk and thence to the extreme edgesof the stopper and act to lockthe same or make the removal of thestopper diflicult. The stopper, however, can be readily removed from theoutside by either grasping the button with the thumb and finger orpassing a string around the same, as during such removal from theoutside the lower edges of the stopper tend to come together and permitthe easy unlocking of the lug or bead.

While we have described our improvement more or less minutely as regardsdetails, as being embodied in more or less precise forms and as adaptedto certain uses, we do not desire to be limited thereby unduly any morethan is pointed out in our claims. On the contrary we contemplate allproper uses, changes in form, construction, and arrangement, theomission of immaterial parts and substitution of equivalents ascircumstances may suggest or necessity render expedient.

lVe claim- 1. In combination with a tube or similar article providedwith an interior cushioned surface, an annular loclginggroove and aclosed end, and an elastic or pliable stopper provided with a flangedhead portion extending over the end of the package, a circumferentiallug, bead or projection adapted to fit the inner locking-recess of thetube and prevent the easy withdrawal of stopper, substantially asdescribed.

2. In combination with a package having a filling-opening and providedwith a ledge and interior annular locking groove or recess, a rigid diskadapted to rest on the ledge portion to communicate the force ofinternal pressure to the circumference of the stopper, an elastic orpliable stopper provided with a flanged head and circumferential head orlug adapted to'fit the annular locking-recess of the package and preventthe easy withdrawal of the stopper, substantially as described.

3. In combination with a package containing a filling-opening andprovided with an interior annular locking-recess, and an elastic orpliable stopper provided with a flanged IZO head portion extending overthe end of the package a circumferential lug or bead adapted to lit theannular locking-recess of package and an inverted-dome-shaped portion toprevent easy Withdrawal of the stopper by internal pressure,substantially as described.

4. In a mailing-tube or similar article, the combination of a bodyportion provided with interior cushioned surface, an annular lockingrecess or groove, flexible bottom portion substantially dome-shaped, andan elastic or pliable stopper provided with a flanged head portionextending over the end of the package and a circumferential lug or beadadapted to fit the annular locking-groove of the body to prevent theeasy Withdrawal of stopper, substantially as described.

DOUGAL J. MCKENZIE. WILLIAM MARTIN. Witnesses:

EPHRAIM BANN'ING, THOMAS F. SHERIDAN.

